The present invention relates generally to small simulated weapons, used in the course of military training exercises or recreational war games, that discharge solid or liquid projectiles.
The military has long engaged in simulated war games as a method of training personnel in the arts of weaponry and combat. More recently, non-military personnel have been engaged in simulated war games as a form of recreation. Whether military or non-military, those engaged in such games use weapons that launch benign colorant projectiles as a means of identifying another whom has been xe2x80x98hitxe2x80x99 and is therefore eliminated from the game.
Colorant projectiles are available in the form of paint-balls that may be fired from various spring-loaded or compressed-gas charged devices. Colorant projectiles are also available in liquid form. Presently, it is known to fire paint-balls from devices that resemble pistols, rifles, hand grenades and land mines. It is also known to launch liquid colorant from devices that resemble hand grenades and land mines.
Beyond hand-held pistols and rifles that fire single paint-balls in succession, attempts have been made to develop simulated war game weapons that provide the user with a tactical advantage. For example, it is known to provide reusable compressed-gas charged grenades that can simultaneously launch many paint-balls at an adversary in an effort to simulate the fragmentation of an exploding hand grenade. Also, it is known to provide a reusable compressed-gas charged land mine that simultaneously launches groups of paint-balls in a 360xc2x0 radius. In addition, it is known to provide a reusable compressed-gas charged land mine that sprays liquid colorant in a 360xc2x0 radius upon being tripped by a war game participant.
The primary thrust of the known prior art devices is to provide specialized, single function weapons that discharge either solid or liquid colorant projectiles. Because of their specialized nature the existing devices do not offer the user a choice between launching only paint-balls, launching only liquid colorant, or launching both simultaneously. Nor do the known existing devices offer the user a choice between safely holding and firing the device, or concealing the device like a land mine that is aimed to launch colorant projectiles only at the anticipated adversary. Finally, many of the known prior art devices are not concealable nor is it easy to carry many simultaneously.
Thus, there is a need in the art for a reuseable war game device that launches paint-balls or liquid colorant or both simultaneously, can be aimed and fired by the user while hand-held, can be concealed and aimed but remotely triggered, is easy and inexpensive to manufacture, is easy and inexpensive to charge, is easy to dismantle and repair under field conditions, is durable enough to withstand all field conditions, is concealable, is compact, and is easily portable.
The present invention overcomes the deficiencies of the known prior art devices by providing a reuseable war game device that launches paint-balls or liquid colorant or both simultaneously, can be aimed and fired by the user while hand-held, can be concealed and aimed but remotely triggered, is easy to dismantle and repair under field conditions, is durable enough to withstand all field conditions, and is concealable, compact and easily portable.
Generally speaking the weapon is divided into two main sections, a chambers housing and a launch housing. The launch housing includes a launch barrel connected at both ends by elbows. These elbows are rotatable 360xc2x0 about a longitudinal axis. Connected to each first elbow is a second elbow. Each second elbow is rotatable 360xc2x0 about a second longitudinal axis.
Together, the launch barrel and elbows store the projectiles. Projectiles exit the weapon via the launch ports, the open end of the second elbows. The launch ports are aimed by rotating both the first and second elbows, about the respective axes, toward the target. This combination of multiple elbows provides any firing alignment desired by the user.
Covering each launch port is a removable end cap. During storage and transportation each end cap remains in place.
The housings are removably connected. The connection between the housings includes a check valve. The check valve permits flow only from the chambers housing to the launch housing. In this regard, the check valve prohibits liquid projectile from migrating to the chambers housing.
The chamber housing comprises two distinct chambers. The charge chamber contains the power or charge that launches the projectiles. The hammer chamber contains a hammer assembly, namely a hammer, hammer spring, trigger and safety pin.
To safely fire the weapon while hand-held, the user draws back the trigger by pulling the hold portion and then securing the retainer portion about the retainer seat. The action of drawing back the trigger compresses the hammer spring. The user then inserts the safety pin. Next the elbows are rotated so that the launch ports point toward the target(s) and the end caps are removed. The user then releases the retainer from the retainer seat. All that is necessary to fire the weapon and launch the projectiles is to aim and remove the safety pin.
Alternately, to safely fire the weapon while hand-held, the user rotates the elbows toward the target(s), removes the end caps, aims the weapon, draws back the trigger so that the hammer spring is sufficiently compressed and then releases the trigger.
To set the weapon so that it may be triggered by an adversary to fire upon that adversary, such as when the trigger is released by a trip wire, the user plants or otherwise secures the weapon to a surface. The user then draws back the trigger and secures the retainer about the seat. The user inserts the safety pin to secure the hammer in the cocked position, rotates the elbows so that the launch ports aim at the anticipated target(s) and removes the end caps. The user sets a remote trigger such as a trip wire that will cause the retainer to release from the seat. The user then removes the safety pin and all that is necessary to fire the weapon and launch projectiles is to have the trip wire engage.
Whether the weapon is fired while hand-held or set and tripped by another, the projectiles exit the launch port through the same sequence of events. When the hammer is released from the cocked position the hammer spring uncoils, throwing the hammer toward the container. The pointed ram hits and ruptures the thin seal at the top of the container causing the compressed-gas to violently escape in the usual manner. The escaping gas pushes open the check valve and passes into the launch barrel. The forces exerted by the gas push the projectiles at rapid speed out the launch ports and toward their intended target(s).